Trump name-dropped Sen. Tim Scott and South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem.
Former President Trump revealed his criteria for a running mate on Sunday, but he told Fox News host Maria Bartiromo that he won’t announce a vice-presidential pick “for a little while.”
Trump made the comments in an interview with Bartiromo that aired on “Sunday Morning Futures.” He emphasized that the most important factor is to ensure his running mate would be able to step up and handle the presidency in the case of an emergency.
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“What criteria are you using to identify who your running mate is?” Bartiromo asked.
“Always, it’s gotta be who is going to be a good president. You always have to think that because in case of emergency, things happen, right? No matter who you are, things happen. That’s gotta be number one,” Trump responded.
“Who is your running mate?” Bartiromo pressed.
“Well, I have a lot of good people. I have a lot of good ideas,” he added, saying he “talks to everybody.”
“You know, I reached out to individuals like [South Carolina Sen.] Tim Scott, telling them that they make a much better candidate for me than they do for themselves,” Trump stated. “As I observed him, he was okay, he was good, but he was quite reserved.”
“I observed him over the past week, supporting, defending, and advocating for me. I thought to myself, ‘You’re a far better advocate for me than you are for yourself,'” he remarked.
Trump also commended South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem, highlighting her public statement expressing that she would never run against him because she believes she couldn’t defeat him.
Trump also refuted reports suggesting that his campaign had contacted Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., to discuss the possibility of forming a ticket with him early in the campaign season. Trump stated that such an interaction “never happened.”